Because of A Kiss
by Instant Noodler
Summary: "Tell me, Sesshomaru, how can I take Rin's place in your heart?" she asked desperately with pleading eyes. He stared at her in silence. "I'm sorry..." he gazed at her with his amber orbs full of perplexity. "I don't even know how." With that, he left their candlelight dinner. Silent tears rolled down her face as she slipped off the diamond engagement ring.
1. Their Unpredictable Destiny

Well, this is my attempt in writing something super lighthearted. Let's face it. If you've read my other stories, they're all angst/hurt/comfort dealing with divorce, incurable diseases, and all sorts of ugly drama. If you've also read my profile update, you'd know that those stories are now on hiatus because I just can't bring myself to write on anymore because those stories are just too darn depressing, sorry. I'll go back to them when I'm feeling a bit more depressed later on...

Anyway, this story is purely based on Kaoru Tada-sensei's amazing series "Itazura na Kiss." The plot is totally hers! I just LOVE LOVE that series! It's just amazing! I love, love, love it! I also love the Taiwanese drama adaptation, "It Started With a Kiss." While watching the anime I just thought, "How extremely cute would it be if this was Rumiko-san's Rin and Sesshomaru?" To fulfill my own fantasy, I decided to adapt it. Please, if you like it, read it. If you don't, please no flames. That's just rude. Anyhow...

I've been reading the "Itazura na Kiss" manga and... It's just honestly the best thing that has happened to me! I swear! I've watched the anime only a dozen times... Ah... I'm in love. Did I also mention that I'm finding Daisuke Hirakawa, Naoki Irie's seiyu's voice extremely attractive? It's even more alluring than Ken Narita's voice... and Sesshomaru - let's admit it - just makes us all melt.

I've uploaded this story before. I know I tolda ya'll that I'll be migrating to another pen name... but logistically... I'm just too lazy to do so. Sorry for the trouble!

Okay... enough of my rambling. I'm sure more than half of you didn't read this...

* * *

**Their Unpredictable Destiny**

* * *

She couldn't even begin to tell you how she felt at this very moment. She clutched the handle of the suitcase tighter in her hands and tried not to attract too much attention to herself. She paid special attention to her breathing. She began to analyze even her most trivial gestures. There was more adrenaline in her body than she could handle. This couldn't possibly be happening. Her knees were growing weak. No... No... No... This was a freaking nightmare. Her hands were growing clammier and clammier from nervousness. It was almost like she was being examined under a microscope by his gaze.

"I'm Sesshomaru Takahashi, the eldest son. It's a pleasure meeting you," he bowed politely to the elder Hokkaido and gave her a nonchalant glare as her father turned his attention to Inu no Taisho.

Rin Hokkaido leaped back and gazed at him in fear. Perhaps fear wasn't the best way to describe how she was feeling. In a way, she couldn't be more excited. She was in his home. She was staring at the Sesshomaru Takahashi. He was so handsome. So handsome. Rin was blushing furiously. She should have known... She should have known that this was his residence the moment she saw the plaque outside with "Takahashi" inscribed on it. How many Takahashi's were there? Yes, it was a very common last name... but... but still...

Rin bit her lips once more. There was no way she could have braced herself for this.

"I'm so sorry for troubling your family, Ta-chan. You have no idea how much we appreciate your kindness," her father, Ken Hokkaido bowed once.

"Non-sense, Ho-chan! We invited you here! It's the least we can do while your house is being reconstructed!" Inu no Taisho laughed while patting his old friend on the back. "Besides, it's going to be much more exciting around here now that you and Rin-chan are here!"

"You're here! Ah! Welcome! Welcome!" Izayoi Takahashi ran to the door excitedly. As soon as she caught sight of Rin, she let out a high shriek, "She's much cuter in person too! I'm going to have so much fun with Rin-chan! I've always, always, always wanted a daughter! We're going to go shopping, go to spas, and bake yummy cookies and cakes!"

Izayoi Takahashi was a jocular and good-natured housewife. Once rising movies star, she had gotten married young and exited the show business. Now she was a dedicated full-time mother and wife. It was true - yes, she had two fantastic sons but she had always wanted a daughter. She made no effort to hide her desires either. She had been waiting for Rin's arrival for a long time now.

Izayoi ran over to the young girl and dragged her by the wrist into the living room. She turned to her son, "Onii-chan! Help Rin-chan with her bags!"

"You and Onii-chan are from the same high school, ne, Rin-chan? Do you know each other?" Izayoi grabbed Rin's hands into hers and her eyes dazzled as she looked at the young girl by her side. One thing that bothered him was that his mother always called him "Onii-chan." Why couldn't she be a normal mother and called each family member by their names?

Rin turned over to look at Sesshomaru and blushed furiously while turning away when he caught her staring. He was even cuter in regular clothes. She had only seen him in their school uniforms at school. Rin meekly nodded her head.

"This is great! Sesshomaru! You and Rin can study together now!" Inu no Taisho smiled at his eldest son while taking a seat on the sofa with Ken Hokkaido.

"Onii-chan never does his homework, Rin-chan. Maybe that will change when you're here!" Izayoi smiled once more while patting Rin's shoulder. "This is amazing! I can't believe this! You can be my daughter!"

"Do you guys talk to each other at school often?" Inu no Taisho asked his son.

Sesshomaru smirked mischievously while staring at Rin, "Our classes are... rather far apart. But lately, lots of things have happened that made us more familiar to each other. Isn't that right, Hokkaido-san?"

Rin nodded once more while looking on the floor. This was the worst thing that could happen to her. Absolutely the worst. But in a way, this was like a dream coming true... maybe. Her head was in a mess. It was all too complicated. Let Rin tell you how it all began.

* * *

**The Love Letter**

* * *

On the outskirts of Minato, Tokyo, it was pitch black in all of the houses. No house had their light on but one. In the silence of the hot summery night, everyone was asleep. Only the cicadas were up with her, droning about in the summer heat. That light came from the Hokkaido residence. To be exact, it came from Rin Hokkaido's room.

Why the heck was she still up at this hour? Tomorrow would be Friday. Yes, it was Friday and the weekends were soon to follow but nevertheless it was a school day. There were no tests tomorrow. Nope. None. She wasn't up studying. Not at all.

She wasn't particularly a studious student to begin with. You see, at the Aihara-Irie Academy the students are arranged into classes accordingly to their intelligence. The cream of the crop, the brightest, were sorted into the "A" class, the slightly more average were assigned to the "B" class. Subsequently, the order went on. Rin Hokkaido was a member of the "F" class. That said a lot. Rin was a lovely 17-year-old girl. She was bubbly, optimistic, and very, very cute but she wasn't exactly the sharpest. She was single minded, clumsy, and very, very slow. School? School just never made sense to her. Even she didn't even know how she had made it to senior year in high school.

Anyway, let's guess on, shall we? Was there a project due? No. Was she talking with her friends? No. Was she playing online games? No. She was everything but a gamer. Then what could a high school senior possibly be doing in the wee hours of the morning? The university exams weren't for another five months.

"Sincerely... Yours Truly... Love..." she tapped the tip of the pen against the paper and let out a long sigh. She didn't know how to end the letter. Nothing really seemed appropriate. Nothing drove the point home.

"Your secret admirer? No... Rin, the whole point of this is so that you can confess your feelings to him. He has to know your name!" she reminded herself while she stared hard and long at the pink glittery paper once more. Ah! Suddenly, her eyes sparkled. Got it. She finally signed it as_ "Yours, Rin."_

Perfect. It was simple, straightforward, and... and said everything she wanted to say._ His Rin._

Oh. So she was writing a love letter to confess her love for a particular boy. A boy whom she had been admiring ever since the very first day of her freshman orientation. It seems just like yesterday she was sitting in the auditorium gazing at him...

-x-x-x-

_"Have you heard?" she asked excitedly. Rin turned around to face her good friend, Ayumi Kitoro. "Heard what, Ayumi-chan?" Rin asked curiously._

_"He's here!" Eri Hiro added to Ayumi._

_Rin turned to her other friend. She was more than confused by their excitement. She finally asked, "Who's here? Can someone please explain all of this hype to me?"_

_"Sesshomaru Takahashi! He'll be attending the same high school as we are for the three years!" Ayumi announced in excitement while tugging on Rin's sleeve. "The super genius!"_

_"I heard he's had perfect grades all the way throughout junior high school!"_

_"He's perfect!"_

_"He's ranked number one in the country!"_

_Rin pondered to herself, 'Anyone with such a perfect academic score couldn't possibly have a life. He's probably nerdy and unattractive...'_

_Ayumi shook Rin out of trance as she excitedly pointed to the podium on the stage, "He's here! He's here! Look! Look! That's him! That's him!" Rin followed Ayumi's arm and glanced up. Was she ever wrong? He was... perfect. It was love at first sight._

-x-x-x-

She held up the love letter once more and grinned. It was perfect. Tomorrow was the day. Well... today... now that it was way past midnight. She admired the letter once more. She held it up closer to her nose. Hmm... the paper was scented. She had dabbed it with her favorite fragrance hoping that it would make an impression. She glanced it over once more time to check for any mistakes in the letter because if there were then it would be horrendously embarrassing.

"Time for bed!" she stretched her arms and yawned while spinning herself in the chair to face her bed. She placed the letter on top of her uniform and hopped onto her bed. Time for her beauty sleep! In a few hours, she would finally confess to him!

-x-x-x-

She stood nervously in the hallway. It was still early in the morning. All of the students were just arriving at school. 'Here he comes!' He was so perfect. Sesshomaru Takahashi of the "A" Class. With an IQ of 300, he graduated with the highest grades all through school. He was the top of their year. Time seemed to stop when he was around. His presence was so commanding. It was hard to miss him. He had a heavenly glow that followed him as he walked. She bit down her lips and watched as he walked closer. She could taste the fruity lip-gloss on her tongue. Darn. She was ruining the lip-gloss on her lips. No!

He seemed to be having an engaging conversation with one of his close friends, Bankotsu Mizuki. The way his golden eyes sparkled when he talked made her heartthrob. His flawless visage... that perfect smile... the way his mouth moved when he spoke. On that beautiful sleek silvery hair... short and sexy. It wasn't even gelled. His hair just fell perfectly into a coiffure on its own. He was simply drop dead handsomely gorgeous. The way he walked... there was so much grace and composure. The black blazer of his school uniform was ironed to perfection. The way his "A" Class red plaid tie hung snugly around the collar of his crisp white shirt, revealing much of his muscular torso... This was all too much for Rin to process. Sesshomaru Takahashi was her one and only love. Rin stared in awe. How could anyone be this... perfect?

_'What do I do? What do I do? He's coming... He's coming... He's coming this way!'_

Her heart was exploding in her chest. She didn't want to attract too much attention to herself. She just wanted to run away from it all. 'No. I can't do this. I can't do this.' She clenched the corners of the pink love letter in both of her hand and stepped forward.

No. She couldn't run away. They were graduating this year. This was her senior year. She needed to tell him. It was now or never. If she missed her chance now... she probably wouldn't work up the courage at a later time to do this. She went to the shrine last week and in her fortune it did say that this week was a fortuitous time to make a big move to pursue a goal.

She needed to do it.

Now.

Rin took a deep breath and moved a bit more into the center of the hallway. Her feet seem so heavy today. It was almost like moving two blocks of lead. She extended both of her arms and held out the love letter in front of her. She trembled. She could feel her hands growing cold and sticky. He was getting closer... closer... closer... He stopped his conversation with Bankotsu and stared at her - the strange girl who was obstructing his way. Sesshomaru had a blank stare on his face as he observed the petite girl in front of him. She was from "F" Class. He could tell her class section by the green plaid pattern of her skirt. Each class had their distinct uniform colors but with the same logo design of the academy.

"Takahashi-kun... please accept this..." she whispered to him while turning her glance to the ground aside. She paused for a while and finally mustered enough courage to look at him right in the eyes. She could feel her cheeks burning hotter and hotter. Rin stared deeply into his golden eyes. She has had never been this close to him before. She had always watched him from afar, secretly drooling and admiring his godly presence. She took a few steps closer to him and maintained her determined gaze.

"Yo, Takahashi, isn't this girl from 'F' Class?" Bankotsu stepped closer to Sesshomaru and whispered by his ear with a look of disgust on his face. This girl from "F" Class had some nerve trying to talk to them. "What does she want?"

"How should I know?" Sesshomaru replied with his frigid voice. He narrowed his eyes and stared back at the strange girl facing him. Her big chocolate brown eyes seemed to have looked right through him. Her hair was in two braids, draping by her shoulders.

She was really petite; she had the figure of an elementary school student. Her chest was perfectly flat and her face had a distinct childish innocence. Yet, that determined look on her face made her sort of cute in a very attractive way, just a little. But unfortunately that little bit of cuteness and attractiveness wasn't enough to tempt him.

He could tell what the pink letter was about through its overly ornate cover with hearts and bubbly writing. It didn't take a genius to guess. This had occurred to him too often in the past. Girls often hounded him to confess their love to him. But this? Right in the hall on a Friday morning before class? This was the most moronic thing he had ever seen.

The least this girl could do was to be a bit less conspicuous. Leave it to a brainless girl from the "F" Class to pull a stupid and useless stunt like this. "What a waste of time," Sesshomaru finally replied nonchalantly and broke the long awkward silence. He tucked both of his pants into his khaki pant's pockets and walked away. He didn't even give her a second look.

"Wait, Takahashi-kun!" Rin flung herself around and called Sesshomaru once again. Sesshomaru stopped. "What do you want now?" he asked her with his cool tone once again. There was annoyance in his voice.

"Please? Just take this letter?" Rin stepped forward and offered the letter to him once again. Sesshomaru took a deep breath to compose himself before he turned around. "I don't want it," he stated as he surveyed the determined girl.

"W-why?" Rin asked, almost in a whisper. Her voice was full of hurt.

Sesshomaru didn't miss a single beat. This girl was extremely irritating. He decided to give it to her straight, "Because I hate stupid girls." With that, he turned around once again and left Rin there to sulk in tears.

"Hold up, Sesshomaru!" Bankotsu called out to his friend and dashed behind him. He didn't even realize that Sesshomaru was leaving.

Rin dropped the letter onto the floor. What just happened? She could feel the breath being knocked out of her lungs. He just... walked away... Just like that. Without even a single word. Did he just say that her effort was a waste of time? She stayed up all last night pouring her heart and soul into this letter. No. He just rejected her without a single thought.

No.

No.

No.

He just gave her the ultimate rejection. How cruel. Those words... And all of those words? His words were so simple and yet it hurt her so much. Her ego hurt. What ego? She was the one who confessed to him. She never had any ego to begin with. If she did, she wouldn't have confessed to him like that. Rin could feel her eyes growing damp.

She was in "F" Class. It was expected that he looked down upon her. But of all things, she didn't expect that he was going to be so blunt about it. The least he could have done was to let her down politely.

-x-x-x-

Everyone in the hall stared at her. They were whispering. They were all talking about her. Everyone saw. Why did she have to do it in the morning? It seemed like a good idea just an hour ago. Now she just gave everyone something to laugh about for the rest of the day. Damn.

_Ring._

That was the first bell.

Rin began to make her way down the hall, pretending not to hear everyone's whispers.

"Did you hear? The girl from 'F' Class tried to confess to Sesshomaru Takahashi!"

"No way!"

"What's her name? Rin Hokkaido? Rin Hokkaido confessed to Sesshomaru Takahashi!"

"When?"

"It was in front of everyone!"

"What did he say?"

"What did Sesshomaru say?"

"No way!"

"He rejected her?"

"I would crawl into a hole and never come out if I were her!"

"Totally! That's so embarrassing!"

"That's the stupid shitzzle thing someone from 'F' Class would do. It's expected."

"There she comes!"

"Look! That's her!"

"She's not even hot..."

"I know right?"

"You have to give the girl credit, she's got guts."

"Or just sheer stupidity."

Ugh... Ugh... Ugh... Rin finally had had enough. She turned around and felt the rage looming within her, "Why won't anyone just leave me freaking alone!"

-x-x-x-

"Rin-chan!"

"Rin-chan!"

"We heard what happened this morning!" Eri and Ayumi ran into the classroom to hug their unfortunately badgered friend. "Oh, honey... It'll all be alright. Come here. There. There."

"He's out of your league!" Eri shook Rin, hard. "Stop being silly, Rin-chan! He's in 'A' Class! You're in 'F'!"

"I know," Rin shifted closer to her desk, folding her arms and leaning in. "I know."

Why was she so reckless? So stupid? Rin thought to herself. She had held her feelings in for the past two years, why couldn't she hold it in for a little longer? Now she couldn't even admire him in peace now that everyone knew her little secret. Rin twitched and furrowed her brows. This wasn't a part of her plan. She really wanted to cry. She was humiliated, embarrassed, and mortified.

"Rin-chan! Are you alright?"

A cute senior boy ran into he classroom. His eyes sparkled as he saw Rin. "I was so worried! I didn't believe any of those rumors! How could you possibly like that cold-blooded bastard?" Kohaku Miyake pounded on the desk. "Sesshomaru Takahashi is below your league!"

"What an optimistic guy," Eri whispered to Ayumi quietly to make sure Kohaku didn't hear.

"What a poor guy is more like it. He's liked Rin-chan ever since freshman year," Ayumi whipspered back to Eri. "She's so oblivious she doesn't even have a clue."

"He's probably the one spreading the rumors! You, confessing to him? Ridiculous! That's absurd!" Kohaku pounded on the desk once again. His face had turned into a red color from the rage at the thought of Sesshomaru defaming Rin and tarnishing her reputation.

"Actually," Rin pushed herself up before she began again. Her eyes were damp from tears. "Actually... I did write him a love letter. I... I figured that there might have been a slight chance he felt the same about me too..."

"No! Rin! This can't be true!" Kohaku tugged Rin's sleeves. It was his turn to cry now. "Please tell me that this isn't true! You're just messing with me, right?"

"Kohaku-kun... you're in denial," Ayumi tapped Kohaku's shoulders as he began to sniffle. "Rin-chan has liked Takahashi for years now. It's a fact and everyone knows about it."

"No!" Kohaku suddenly had a look of terror on his face as the news began to sink into him. He stayed silent for a moment before he clenched his fist with a look of determination in his eyes. "In that case then... I can't forgive him for embarrassing Rin-chan like this! This is an open challenge to me. Who does that bastard think he is?"

"It's alright. It's my fault," Rin sniffed while rubbing her eyes with her sleeves. "Just drop it. I'll be fine. It's my fault."

"Rin-chan..."

-x-x-x-

The day passed by very quickly without any new events. The whole school now knew about the little episode that had occurred this morning. Rin just wanted to dig a hole in the ground and hide into it.

* * *

Well, long story short. Ken Hokkaido had finally built a brand new house. Unfortunately due to poor construction, the house collapsed in a mere level 3 earthquakes. Inu no Taisho Takahashi was Ken Hokkaido's best friend from high school. In fact, Ken Hokkaido even helped Inu no Taisho pursue his wife, Izayoi Furishiwa. Anyways, so the Takahashi couple saw the news report and found out that Ken needed a place to stay while his house was under reconstruction. They were more than happy to invite Ken and his daughter Rin to stay with them.

... And that was how Rin ended up here, under the same roof a Sesshomaru.

"I'm so happy! Rin-chan is finally here!" Izayoi smiled ear to ear and stated the obvious once more. There was no doubt Izayoi was more than excited to have Rin in her home. She adored the young girl already. Rin was not "sexy" but she sure was a darling. Izayoi laughed once more. Sesshomaru was irritated by his mother's excitement over Rin's arrival. He leaned against the wall of the living room with his arms crossed in front of his chest and grumbled.

In the midst of laughter, a little boy walked down the stairs. He caught Rin's attention: silvery hair and golden eyes... he was like a mini Sesshomaru. Rin was more than amused. He watched the little boy as he descended from upstairs and walked towards the living room.

"InuYasha! Come over here and introduce yourself! Don't be rude!" Izayoi called the little boy to come into the living room.

"I'm InuYasha Takahashi. I'm currently attending grade 4 at Tonan University Elementary School. Nice to meet you," he bowed politely at the guests. When he straightened himself up, he saw Rin. InuYasha suddenly had a devilish smirk across his little face. He turned around briefly to look at his brother who had the same devilish look on his face. InuYasha knew exactly what to do.

"Ne, Onee-san. I'm doing homework. Can you explain these kanji to me?" InuYasha held out the little notebook in his hand to Rin.

Rin hesitantly took the notebook from his hands and glanced at the page.

_'What the hell... Did I even learn this in elementary school?'_ Rin's eyes widened at the kanji. She knew nothing. Absolutely nothing. Everyone stared at Rin with anticipation.

"Buta... means... pig... This one... right here," Rin pointed to the character on the page and tapped at the paper and repeated herself once more.

Everyone went silent.

Ken turned crimson upon his daughter's words out of embarrassment. Sesshomaru snickered silently in the back.

"Eh... Rin-chan... it's 'ha'... for feather," Izayoi whispered to Rin. "It's okay... it's a hard character to recognize."

"You are such an idiot! 'Pig?' It's 'feather' you pig brain! You really are a moron! I can't believe you're living at my house! Stay away from me! I'm scared that I might be infected by your stupidity!" InuYasha yelled at Rin mercilessly.

Sesshomaru laughed some more, covering his mouth with his fist, pretending to be coughing in the corner of the living room.

Rin wanted to cry. She had been disapproved and ridiculed by both of the Takahashi brothers... Nothing could be more embarrassing.

"So rude, Otouto-chan! Apologize to Onee-san right now!" Izayoi tugged on her son's ear. "Now!"

"No! I don't apologize to morons!" InuYasha shouted and winnowed his way out of his mother's grasp. He made a face at Rin and stuck out his tongue before he ran upstairs again. Passing his brother, Sesshomaru gave InuYasha a wink.

"InuYasha! Come back here! I'm not happy with you!" Inu no Taisho shouted after his son. He turned to Rin and frowned apologetically, "I'm sorry, Rin-chan. InuYasha doesn't know any better. Don't take it to heart."

Rin nodded and blushed furiously.

"No, no, Ta-chan. You can't blame it all on InuYasha-kun. Rin is at fault either. She should have known her elementary kanji. Bear with her; she's not the brightest," Ken explained apologetically on behalf of his daughter's inability to identify grade 4 kanji.

Sesshomaru couldn't bear to watch anymore. Stupid girls would always be stupid girls. Rin Hokkaido was especially stupid. He had finally had enough. He was going to go up and go to bed already. It was already 9 pm. Although he was a high school senior, his bedtime was at 9 pm. He was a genius, after all. He was highly efficient and he never had to study. He couldn't think of anything better to do with his time but to sleep. He turned to the stairs.

Izayoi heard her son's footsteps.

"Onii-chan!" she called out to her son.

Sesshomaru stopped in his tracks upon hearing his mother's voice. He was annoyed but decided to answer to his mother, "Yes, Okaa-sama?"

"Don't be so rude! Help Hokkaido Ojii-sama and Rin-chan with their bags!" Izayoi shouted at her son.

Sesshomaru let out a long sigh. He may have despised that girl from "F" class but he was brought up to be polite. No matter how much he despised her he needed to be a gentleman towards her.

"Coming!" he shouted begrudgingly once more.

-x-x-x-

"Ah! It's so pretty!" Rin stared at the room in awe. Everything was absolutely beautiful. The room was five times larger than her room at home. Everything was covered in pink and white lace. It was a room fit for a princess.

"I know right? I've always wanted to decorate a room like this!" Izayoi grinned once more as she leaned against the doorframe with Rin. "Now I finally can! I'm so excited to have you in the house, Rin-chan!"

"This was InuYasha's room. Because you're here, he has to live with me in the same room. It's really crowded," Sesshomaru stated coldly as he placed Rin's suitcases in the room by the small bedroom sofa.

"Onii-chan, stop complaining," Izayoi shot her son a glare. She wasn't pleased with either Sesshomaru's or InuYasha's attitude tonight. "Help Rin get settled. I'm going down to prepare the tea."

With that Izayoi left the room and descended down the stairs.

"You... you don't have to help me, Takahashi-kun," Rin turned away shyly and looked down at the floor while playing with her fingers.

"Good, I wasn't going to," Sesshomaru gave Rin a bored look. "I'm going to bed now."

He walked towards the door. Before he left her in the room, he bid her a final request, "Do me a favor, Hokkaido-san?"

"Hai?" Rin shot her head towards Sesshomaru's direction.

"Please, don't be a bother. The least thing I need is for you to hover around in my life. I like it the way it is right now," Sesshomaru didn't give her a second glance and shut the door behind him.

Rin fell into the chair behind her with shock. What kind of terrible place has she come to?

* * *

_'I can't believe this,'_ Rin took another bite of the omelet. She fixed her eyes on Sesshomaru who was sitting across from her reading the Nippon Journal while sipping a cup of orange juice. He was smartly dressed in his crisp school uniform. Izayoi was meticulous in dressing her sons. Not a single speck of lint was on their black blazers.

It just dawned on her that she was living under the same roof as Sesshomaru Takahashi, whom she had been admiring secretly for the past three years. This was all too surreal for her. She snuck a few glances around the dining room. It was grand. Very grand. The entire house... no, mansion, was decorated in the Western style. She had learned last night that Inu no Taisho founded the largest toy company in the country and was able to make a generous living. The Takahashi family lived in style.

_'I'm eating breakfast with Takahashi-kun...'_ Rin blushed furiously and chewed her food carefully while lost in thought.

"Rin-chan, did you sleep well last night?" Inu no Taisho asked Rin with a gentle smile on his face. But Rin was too deep in thought to respond to him. Inu no Taisho addressed her once more, "Rin-chan? Rin-chan?"

"Baka..." InuYasha grumbled while staring at the dazed Rin at the breakfast table. "See? She can't even eat properly without tuning out!"

"Otouto-chan! Stop being so rude to Rin Onee-chan!" Izayoi gently smacked her son's head while sitting down beside him.

"Hai... yes, Ojii-sama, very well," Rin blushed and laughed nervously when she realized her aloofness at the breakfast table.

"Thank you for breakfast, Okaa-sama," Sesshomaru folded the newspaper and placed it on the breakfast table. He placed his cutleries at the five o'clock angle and ascended from his seat. "I'm going to school now."

"Onii-chan! Take Rin-chan with you!" Izayoi nudged Sesshomaru.

"I want to go too!" InuYasha got up to follow Sesshomaru.

"No! You can't! Down, InuYasha!" Izayoi pulled her younger son down at the table once more. Everyone was surprised by Izayoi's sudden burst of assertiveness. It was quite unexpected. Izayoi had noticed this - she was being too obvious. She laughed to justify her self, "Otouto-chan hasn't finished his breakfast yet... ha..."

She turned to Rin, "Rin! You're finished your breakfast! Go with Onii-chan!" Izayoi looked over at Sesshomaru who was just picking up an apple from the breakfast basket and began to bid her request, "Onii-chan! Take Rin-chan with you! You need to show her the routes to school!"

"Rin-chan! You're done breakfast, right? Go with Onii-chan!" With that, Izayoi gave Rin a wink and a thumb up for good luck and encouragement.

Rin seemed to have gotten the subtle hint, "H-hai, Oba-sama!"

Izayoi smiled to herself. Everything was going accordingly to planned. The Gods have finally answered her prayers. She had always wanted a daughter and now she had one... almost. She had to seize this opportunity... and make Rin her "daughter," permanently.

-x-x-x-

Rin walked behind Sesshomaru in a daze. Was she really walking behind Sesshomaru? She was having an out of body experience. This was all happening too fast. She was... so close to him. She wasn't where she was going at all and suddenly.

_WHAM._

"Gah! Ou... ou... ouch..." Rin rubbed her nose; it really hurt. She had walked into something solid. She took a moment to let the pain subside and looked up only to meet Sesshomaru's stoical face. God forbid... Darn it. She had just bumped into Sesshomaru's back.

"You moron! Useless girl! You can't even walk properly!" Sesshomaru snapped. He never snapped. It was odd; he was losing his temper. He had never lost his temper. Ever. But there was just something about this girl that irked him. He couldn't put a finger on it.

Rin cringed and stepped back at the sight of Sesshomaru's fury. His light golden eyes seemed to have turned into dark amber.

"One. Do not walk so close to me, I don't like it. Two. I'm only going to show you the route to school this once and once only so you'd better remember it. Three. When we're at school, do not. I repeat, do not talk to me! Do not tell anyone that we're living together. Understand?" Sesshomaru yelled at the small girl in front of him.

"H-...hai..." Rin quivered in fear.

Sesshomaru took in a deep breath and turned around to keep walking. Little did he know that this was only the very beginning…

Sesshomaru Takahashi? Meet Rin Hokkaido whom you'll come to love, protect, and cherish... eventually. You just don't know it, yet.

* * *

Here's the beginning to "Itazura na Kiss's" InuYasha edition :) Hm... we all know that Sesshomaru and Izayoi aren't really related. But for the sake of this OOC and AU fic, we'll pretend that they are.


	2. Two Can Play This Game

Second chapter up!

* * *

**Two Can Play This Game**

* * *

If you've never been on the subway train during rush hour in Minato, let Rin tell you. Millions of people were on the move, literally. Stations had hired professional "pushers" to push the multitude of people into the trains. This wasn't an exaggeration. These pushers were highly trained professionals.

She could feel the air being pushed out of her very body. She gripped the handle of her school bag tightly in her hands but she could feel it drifting further away from her as more people came onto the train.

Rin tiptoed to find Sesshomaru. He was six or seven feet away from her by the train's door. He was very tall and his unusual sleek and trim silvery hair was hard to miss even from afar in a crowd of people.

There was no way for her to get to him, the section of the train was packed. Fully jammed. Rin let out a long sigh.

Huh? Her eyes suddenly shot open.

_'Someone... someone is touching my bottom... There's a pervert.'_

Rin suddenly felt a rough hand trailing up her legs. She felt disgusted and violated. Her side locked her hands and there was no room to move around at all. She couldn't even identify the pervert.

_'Someone... help me!'_

"Help! Takahashi-kun! Pervert! Help!" Rin called out in frustration. She was screaming on the top of her lungs but it was too noisy inside the train section, no one could hear her.

"Takahashi-kun! Help me!" she called for Sesshomaru's help once more.

Nothing.

No reaction from him at all. None.

Rin gulped. Sesshomaru didn't even raise his head her way. She was certain that he could hear her crying for help. He chose not to respond. He...

_'Sesshomaru! You... you... you jerk!'_ Rin cussed while winnowing and enduring the assault. She flinched and twitched her legs.

"Kamiyacho Station. Kamiyacho Station."_ Ding. Ding. Ding._

Saved by the bell, literally. The crush of people gravitated towards the door of the subway train and poured out from the door as it opened. Rin drifted to the platform with the crowd. She was still shaking the disgusting feeling from her. She was hurt, embarrassed, violated, and furious.

"Wait... Wait! Sesshomaru!" she roared his first name. It was rude of her to do so and she knew it. But she couldn't care less at that moment. He deserved all of her fury and outburst.

"Didn't I tell you not to talk to me?" Sesshomaru cringed and gave Rin a cold stare as he walked up the stairs of the station.

"Why you? A pervert violated me! I called for your help and you chose not to help me!" Rin yelled once more with tears of frustration in her eyes.

"There were many people in the train," Sesshomaru rolled his eyes at the little girl behind him. "Besides, who would want to touch... you? Stop making a big deal out of this. A moron like you was probably exaggerating. You know how to get to school from here. Like I said, don't follow me."

Without another word, Sesshomaru cold turned his back on Rin and walked out of the train station.

_'This person...'_ Rin couldn't believe her ears. She trembled in pure exasperation. What did he just say to her? What. Did. He. Just. Say? She stood there and felt the blood drained from her face. She felt numb. Sesshomaru Takahashi... was cold blooded!

-x-x-x-

In anger, she couldn't bring herself to concentrate in class all morning. Her face was still flushed with pure disgust and rage. '_Sesshomaru Takahashi, damn you. Damn you.'_

Rin gripped her pencil and copied intently away at the midterm schedule posted on the board.

"Rin-chan?" Ayumi popped up beside her. It was recess beak but Rin was still concentrating so intently. This was so unlike her.

"Should we let her be?" Eri whispered to Ayumi while watching Rin from the back, one table down.

"Maybe... maybe we should talk to her," Ayumi advanced to Rin, tapping her on the shoulders. "Rin-chan... Rin-chan..."

"Don't bother me. I'm copying down the midterm exam schedule!" Rin didn't bother to look away from the paper she was writing on.

"Why? We never study for that thing. In fact, we only pass with the bell curve," Eri joined the conversation. "Why are you trying so hard all of the sudden?"

"I'm going to beat Sesshomaru Takahashi! Watch me!" Rin muttered angrily while scribbling away. "Stupid Takahashi. I'll show him who's the idiot!"

"Ahhaha! Hahaha! Ha! Ha! Rin-chan! You can't be serious!"

"Damned right I am! I'm going to beat Sesshomaru Takahashi on the upcoming midterm!" Rin stated, in an as-a-matter-of-fact manner.

"Are you alright, Rin-chan?" Ayumi went up to feel her forehead. "Do you have a fever?"

"We don't even make it up to the top one hundred! Ever! No one in 'F' Class has done it before!"

Rin glanced up with range in her eyes, "Watch me!"

-x-x-x-

Rin smacked her face against the desk, _'I don't get anything. Nothing! Nothing at all!'_

She finally tosses the physics workbook aside and rubbed her throbbing temple. She had been at this for the past six hours. She had made no progress. None. In fact, she had only gotten through the first ten pages and she couldn't even think of a way to approach the problems. How was she going to beat Sesshomaru?

"Rin-chan! Honey! How are you doing? I brought some snacks for you," Izayoi strolled into Rin's room with a tray full of delightful confection and fruits. "I even made a smoothie for you! It's a power smoothie!"

"... Thank you so much, Oba-sama!" Rin stared at the tray with amusement. She felt her stomach grumble. It's been hours since she's had dinner. She glanced at the clock on her desk. It was a quarter past eleven already.

"I'm so happy that I finally get to make snacks! I feel like a mother now!" Izayoi took a seat by Rin's desk and cracked a large smile on her face as Rin picked up the piece of tea biscuit from the plate.

"Hm... This is so good, Oba-sama!" Rin took a bite of the lemon cranberry biscuit. "It's delicious!"

Izayoi smiled ear to ear. Her dreams were finally coming true! She had always wanted to make midnight snack for her children but she had never gotten the chance to.

"I never get to do this for Onii-chan," Izayoi let out a long sigh. "But it's all good now! Now that you're here, Rin-chan!"

"Huh? Why not, Oba-sama?" Rin looked at the older woman with wonder and amusement.

"Onii-chan never studies past nine. Ever," Izayoi shook her head. "In fact, he's asleep already."

_'No way,'_ Rin's mouth was agape. There was no way Sesshomaru never studied. She had been slaving for hours and she had only gotten three classes of problem sets. How could Sesshomaru possibly be done?

"I don't even get half the things," Rin sulked and pressed her face against her notebook on the table.

"Why don't you ask Onii-chan for help? He seems to get it," Izayoi gave Rin a gentle smile. "Rin-chan, would you like to take a break?" Izayoi pulled out an album.

Rin perked her eyebrow and sat down beside Izayoi on the sofa while sipping her glass of smoothie.

Izayoi opened the album to the first page and grinned.

"Ah! She's so cute!" Rin gawked at the pictures of a beautiful little girl in the album. "I love this cute pink dress! I've always wanted to wear one like this when I was a little girl! Who is it, Oba-sama?"

Rin flipped to the next page and cooed at the adorable little girl in a baby blue sailor suit.

"It's Onii-chan when he was little," Izayoi giggled at Rin's reaction.

"What?" Rin stared at Izayoi in terror and shifted back on the sofa. No freaking way! How could that be... Sesshomaru?

"Well... I've always wanted a daughter," Izayoi tapped her chin with her fingers and looked up. "When I was pregnant, I was so sure that I would have a baby girl so I bought all girl's clothing. Then... unfortunately I had a baby boy. But I didn't have the heart to throw all of the cute baby clothes away so I decided to dress Onii-chan in them until he was old enough to choose."

Rin was trying hard to suppress her outburst of laughter in the corner. This was just too precious.

"Hm... But I think this was one of the contributing factors to Onii-chan's cold personality," Izayoi cringed and let out a long sigh. "Rin-chan, this will be our little secret, okay? Even InuYasha doesn't know about this! It's just between us two." She gave Rin a small wink.

"Hai, Oba-sama!"

"Now, do you want one of these pictures?" Izayoi pointed to the picture of Sesshomaru in the fluffy princess dress on the next page. "How about this one?"

-x-x-x-

"Good morning, Onii-chan!" InuYasha sat at the breakfast table beside Sesshomaru.

Rin took a seat across from the two brothers. When she saw Sesshomaru, she couldn't help it but to snicker when she recalled the pictures from last night. This was going to take a lot for her to get over.

Sesshomaru stared at Rin with annoyance, what was this idiot up to anyways?

-x-x-x-

"Ne, Rin-chan, do you want to go shopping after school today?" Ayumi sat by Rin and took out her bento from her backpack.

"No," Rin shook her head and sighed. "I need to study for midterms."

"Wow... someone is working hard," Ayumi teased Rin as she took out a pair of chopsticks.

"Hokkaido-san," a familiar voice caught Rin off guard. This couldn't be... The entire class suddenly stopped talking and their undivided attention all focused on the boy at the classroom door. Sesshomaru Takahashi was standing at the entrance.

"Oh. My. Gosh! It's Sesshomaru Takahahashi!"

"It's Takahashi from 'A' Class!"

"What's he doing here?"

Whispers began spreading in the classroom.

"Did he just call Rin?"

"No way!"

"Hokkaido-san, can you come out for a moment please? And bring your backpack along," Sesshomaru requested Rin as he tapped impatiently on the door.

Rin froze. He had caught her off guard, _'What... what does he want?'_

-x-x-x-

"I think there's been a mix up," Sesshomaru grumbled as he dug through his backpack and pulled out a pink bento. "This is yours. Where's mine?"

Kohaku, Eri, and Ayumi were watching Rin and Sesshomaru from afar.

"Oh..." Rin looked disappointed. She was expecting something more exciting than exchanging bento at lunch. She reached into her backpack and held out a larger black bento. "I was wondering mine was so large."

"Useless, brainless woman," Sesshomaru muttered angrily. "You've been nothing but trouble since the moment you came."

Rin suddenly felt an unprecedented anger growing from her. Two can play this game. She was going to fight back. She needed to show him that she wasn't a force to be trifled with. She knew exactly how to do it.

"I know right, Takahashi-kun? Us living under the same roof... Mix-ups are to be expected. In fact, you might accidentally wear my uniform," Rin laughed devilishly.

"What the heck? Your uniform?" Sesshomaru's interest peaked at Rin's words. Where did that come from?

"Hehe... Because when you were little, you wore dresses a lot, didn't you?" Rin laughed wickedly and pulled out a childhood picture of Sesshomaru, dressed in a pretty princess dress. "You were such a darling too!"

"No. Freaking. Way!" Sesshomaru gulped, hard. His eyes widened at the picture in Rin's hand. He yelped in horror, "How! How did you get that!"

"Oba-sama gave it to me! I've seen the other ones too! You were so cute, Takahashi-kun!" Rin laughed once more.

"Give it back to me!" Sesshomaru lunged at Rin while reaching for the picture of him from her hand. "Now!"

"No!" Rin leaped back with a big grin on her face. 'Who's the one laughing now?'

"What! Why!" Sesshomaru looked around to make sure no one was around. His reputation was at stake here.

"Because I'm fed up with you and your cruel remarks towards me! Now you need to get a taste of your own medicine!"

"Are you blackmailing me?" Sesshomaru yelled at Rin while attempting to grab the photograph from her once more.

"Hm... I can give it back to you..." Rin tucked the photograph into the inner breast pocket of her blazer. "But you have to do something for me."

Sesshomaru gulped. What did this girl want from him?

"You need to tutor me," Rin took a few steps towards Sesshomaru and smiled.

"Me?" Sesshomaru stared at Rin blankly.

"If you can get me into the top 100 spot for the exam, I'll give the picture back to you," Rin smirked and patted the breast pocket of her blazer.

"Fat chance! As if I'm going to do that!"

"Hm... I'll just mail this to the entire school then," Rin rolled her eyes and smiled sweetly back at Sesshomaru.

"No! Wait!" Sesshomaru called out to Rin before she turned around. "I'll... I'll do it." If this was what it took for him to save his reputation, fine. He'll do it.

"Really?" Rin's eyes sparkled as she heard Sesshomaru's compliant response.

"Before you get too excited, I need to make one thing clear," Sesshomaru raised his voice to capture her attention. "I can't promise that I can get you into top 100. You have to understand that 'A' Class dominates it with 'B' Class every exam. Not even students from 'C' Class get into the list. You're in 'F' Class."

"Oh..." Rin felt a little bit dejected. That was true.

"But... I can tutor you. Starting tonight," Sesshomaru mumbled and began to walk away.

Rin blinked blankly as she watched Sesshomaru disappearing down the hallway. Well... this was the first step. Rin Hokkaido - 1. Sesshomaru Takahashi - 4. She was beginning to even out the scores. She couldn't help but to grin from her small victory.

-x-x-x-

"This is amazing, Onee-sama!" Ken Hokkaido complimented Izayoi's spectacular cooking.

"Don't praise her too much, Ho-chan," Inu no Taisho laughed whole-heartedly. "Or it might get to Izzy's head!"

Izayoi laughed, "You're the professional master chef here, Ken-kun."

Rin's father, Ken Hokkaido was a chef by trade and ran his own restaurant. He had a devious palette that was hard to impress. But Izayoi's cooking was truly amazing. She could even make brussel sprouts taste delicious.

"Ne, Rin-chan. What would you like to have for midnight snack tonight?" Izayoi turned to Rin and asked her excitedly.

"Hm... same as last night please, Oba-sama! Thanks so much! I loved the smoothie!" Rin was getting excited for the midnight feast that Izayoi was going to prepare for her.

"Okaa-sama, make one for me too. I'll be in Rin's room," Sesshomaru muttered as he took another sip of the miso soup.

Suddenly, all conversations ceased at the dinner table and everyone directed their attention towards Sesshomaru. No one could believe what had just happened.

"Onii-chan... You're studying with Rin-chan? I'm so happy!"

He pretended not to notice everyone's staring. It was all Rin's fault.

* * *

Finished writing... now off to bed. I'll go back to read it over again for syntax and flow tomorrow :) If you've found an error, bear with me for now. I just really wanted to get the second chapter out.


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